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Argentina is voting for legislative election – a key test for President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.

The mid-term elections will determine how much control left-leaning Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will have during the final two years of her presidency.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been out of action during the campaign following emergency brain surgery earlier in October.

She is currently constitutionally barred from running for a third term in office.

Many see Sunday’s elections as the start of the race to replace her.

The mid-term elections will determine how much control left-leaning Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will have during the final two years of her presidency

The mid-term elections will determine how much control left-leaning Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will have during the final two years of her presidency

Voters will choose 127 members of the 257-strong Chamber of Deputies and a third of the Senate’s 72 members.

Correspondents say that if her Front for Victory (FPV) party fares badly, it may signal an end to more than a decade of Kirchner family rule in Argentina.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s late husband Nestor ran the country between 2003 and 2007, when he was succeeded as president by his wife. She was then elected for a second term in 2011.

Although her party is still strong on a nationwide level, high inflation, insecurity and currency controls have weakened its support among middle class families.

Former cabinet chief Sergio Massa is ahead of her candidate Martin Insaurralde in the key province of Buenos Aires.

Sergio Massa, currently mayor of the tourist town of Tigre, says he wants to put an end to Kirchner family rule when he runs for president in two years.

He was elected mayor as a member of the Front for Victory, but left the party in June 2013 to establish the Renewal Front.

Currently, the constitution limits the number of consecutive presidential terms to two, and a two-thirds majority in both houses of parliament would be needed to amend it.

The August primaries indicated that Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner may struggle to keep control of Congress, let alone build up a two-thirds majority.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was told by doctors earlier this month to stop her congressional election campaign after having surgery to remove a blood clot on her brain following a head injury in August.

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Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will undergo surgery on Tuesday to treat bleeding on her brain, doctors have said.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, 60, was earlier ordered to rest for a month after doctors discovered the subdural hematoma.

The subdural hematoma was diagnosed as she was undergoing tests for another condition on Saturday.

This means Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will have to suspend campaigning for congressional elections.

The break from campaigning is considered awkward for the president as some opinion polls have suggested the government could lose control of Congress in the poll on October 27.

Medical experts say recovering from this type of surgery is a long process, and her lay-off is now likely to be longer than a month.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will undergo surgery to treat bleeding on her brain

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will undergo surgery to treat bleeding on her brain

The president’s spokesman, Alfredo Scoccimarro, had issued a statement on Sunday saying her doctors had carried out a brain scan in August after a previously undisclosed trauma – thought to be caused by a fall.

They found nothing untoward, but on Saturday, she went to hospital for checks for an irregular heartbeat and also complained of headaches.

A further scan revealed the subdural hematoma – bleeding between the brain and the skull.

The hospital treating her said on Monday she had experienced a slight loss of muscular strength in her left arm the day before.

Doctors said she needed surgery to drain the subdural hematoma.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was first elected in 2007 and then returned to power by a comfortable majority in 2011.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s husband, former President Nestor Kirchner, died after a heart attack in 2010.

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Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been ordered to take a month off work after bleeding was found on her brain.

The 60-year-old Argentine president was undergoing medical checks for another condition when the bleeding – a subdural hematoma – was discovered.

Vice-President Amado Boudou is flying back from France to take over her duties.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been campaigning ahead of congressional elections.

The break from campaigning is considered awkward for the president as some opinion polls have suggested the government could lose control of Congress in the poll on October 27.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been ordered to take a month off work after bleeding was found on her brain

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been ordered to take a month off work after bleeding was found on her brain

Her spokesman, Alfredo Scoccimarro, issued a statement saying her doctors had carried out a brain scan in August after a previously undisclosed trauma – thought to be caused by a fall.

However, they found nothing untoward.

On Saturday, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner went to hospital for checks for an irregular heartbeat and also complained of headaches.

A further scan revealed the subdural hematoma – bleeding between the brain and the skull.

The condition is said to be “chronic” but not “acute” according to the presidential statement, and Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will not be staying in hospital.

Her doctors are to monitor the bleeding using imaging technology.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, a centre-left Peronist, was first elected in 2007 and then returned to power by a comfortable majority in 2011.

There have been hints that she may seek a third term, though Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has never confirmed this.

This would also require a change to the constitution – only possible if her party keeps control of Congress.

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Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has criticized her country’s elite for trying to create a negative image of her government.

“These small sectors have done well through history, they have kept the lion’s share,” Cristina Fernandez said in an interview with state television.

The president added that most Argentines are better off now than when she came to power.

“Argentina is growing by 5% a year in a world that is collapsing,” she said.

She accused the country’s media of misleadingly “creating an image people believe in”.

“Many want to go to back to the Argentina of the past, where labor cost was much lower and profit margins from speculation much higher,” Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner told Television Publica.

She said privileged sectors in Argentina “have failed to learn from history, or believe that history can be repeated indefinitely.”

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has criticized her country's elite for trying to create a negative image of her government

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has criticized her country’s elite for trying to create a negative image of her government

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s government had reduced unemployment and raised the standard of living, she said, through successful development and growth public policies.

She said Argentina’s transformation began when her late husband, Nestor Kirchner, took office as president in May 2003.

Nestor Kirchner took over a country recovering for the financial collapse which culminated in street riots at the end of 2001.

Argentina enjoyed several years of strong economic growth during his government.

Nestor Kirchner was succeeded by Cristina Fernandez, who was first elected in 2007 and re-elected in 2011 with 54% of the vote.

But her popularity has since declined, according to opinion polls, and protesters have taken to the streets to denounce widespread corruption and high inflation.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has also had a difficult relationship with the country’s media. Under her government, the Congress approved a new media law that critics say restricts freedom press.

She also introduced tighter regulations for Argentines attempting to buy foreign currency.

In her interview with state television, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said the measure was necessary.

“As president I look after the interests of 40 million Argentines. So, as I don’t print dollars, I need dollars to pay the debt I haven’t created.”

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Uruguay’s President Jose Mujica has apologized for apparently referring to Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as an “old hag”.

In a radio interview Jose Mujica offered “heartfelt apologies” and blamed the quip on his “rough language skills”.

Last week, Jose Mujica was overheard saying: “This old hag is even worse than the cross-eyed man.”

It was claimed that the Uruguayan president referred to Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and her late husband, whom she succeeded as president.

Cristina Fernandez’s husband, Nestor Kirchner, had a lazy eye. He died suddenly of a heart attack in 2010.

Uruguay’s President Jose Mujica has apologized for apparently referring to Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as an old hag

Uruguay’s President Jose Mujica has apologized for apparently referring to Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as an old hag

The comments, meant to be private, were accidentally caught and recorded by a nearby open microphone.

Jose Mujica’s words caused outrage in Argentina and led to an official protest.

In an interview to radio M24 on Thursday, Jose Mujica put the comments down to his “rough” past life in an armed group.

“We can’t avoid that our daily and intimate manner of speaking is sometimes rough,” the president said, adding that it has been shaped by spending many years in prison cells and detention.

“This kind of language is miles away from public speeches, from the press. It has only to do with intimate relationships between very few.”

Jose Mujica made the controversial comments at the start of a news conference while speaking quietly to another official.

El Observador newspaper posted the audio on its website, claiming that the president did not realize that the microphones were on.

The newspaper said that its website had crashed because of historically high levels of traffic generated by its coverage of the incident. It also gained the attention of social media.

Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman summoned the Uruguayan ambassador in Buenos Aires, Guillermo Pomi, to protest about the comments.

Correspondents say that President Jose Mujica, 77, who took office in 2010, has clashed in the past both with Cristina Fernandez and Nestor Kirchner.

Relations between Uruguay and Argentina have recently been strained because of concern in Montevideo over what it sees as protectionist measures enforced by Buenos Aires.

Nestor Kirchner was Argentina’s president from 2003 to 2007. His wife, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner succeeded him and won re-election in 2011.

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Argentina has made an official protest after Uruguay’s President Jose Mujica was caught on microphone apparently referring to President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as an “old hag”.

President Jose Mujica was overheard saying: “This old hag is even worse than the one-eyed man.” (Esta vieja es peor que el tuerto.)

A Uruguayan newspaper has posted audio of Jose Mujica’s comments on its website.

It has claimed that Jose Mujica was referring to Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and her late husband, who she succeeded as president.

Cristina Fernandez’s husband, Nestor Kirchner, had a lazy eye. He died suddenly of a heart attack in 2010.

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica was caught on microphone apparently referring to Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as an old hag

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica was caught on microphone apparently referring to Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as an old hag

President Jose Mujica has denied that he had been talking about the Kirchners, but has so far failed to explain who else he was referring to.

Jose Mujica made the comments at the start of a news conference while speaking quietly with another official.

El Observador newspaper posted the audio on its website, claiming that the president did not realize that the microphones were on.

The newspaper said that its website has crashed because of historically high levels of traffic generated by its coverage of the incident which has also gained the attention of social media.

Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman summoned the Uruguayan ambassador in Buenos Aires, Guillermo Pomi, to protest about the comments.

“It is unacceptable that derogatory comments that offend the memory… of a deceased person, who cannot defend himself, have been made, particularly by someone to whom Nestor Kirchner considered his friend,” a statement issued by the foreign ministry said.

Correspondents say that President Jose Mujica, 77, a former guerrilla leader who took office in 2010, has clashed in the past both with Cristina Fernandez and Nestor Kirchner.

Relations between Uruguay and Argentina have recently been strained because of concern in Montevideo over what it sees as protectionist measures enforced by Buenos Aires.

Nestor Kirchner was Argentina’s president from 2003 to 2007. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner succeeded him and won re-election in 2011.

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Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner announces she has asked for Pope Francis’ intervention in the Falklands dispute between her country and the UK.

Visiting the Vatican, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said she had asked Pope Francis to promote dialogue between the two sides.

Argentine Pope Francis was elected last week and will be formally installed as pontiff at a Mass on Tuesday.

In the past Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio has said the Falkland Islands, a UK overseas territory, belong to Argentina.

Before being elected as the new pontiff, the 76-year-old was Archbishop of Buenos Aires. Relations between him, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, and her late husband and predecessor as president, Nestor Kirchner, were tense.

“I asked for his intervention to avoid problems that could emerge from the militarization of Great Britain in the south Atlantic,” Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner told reporters after a 15-20 minute meeting and lunch with the Pope.

“We want a dialogue and that’s why we asked the pope to intervene so that the dialogue is successful.”

There has been no word yet as to how the Pope responded to the appeal.

In a referendum held a week ago, people in the Falkland Islands voted overwhelmingly in favor of remaining a UK overseas territory.

At a Mass last year, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio told Argentine veterans of the Falklands War: “We come to pray for all who have fallen, sons of the Homeland who went out to defend their mother, the Homeland, and to reclaim what is theirs.”

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner announces she has asked for Pope Francis' intervention in the Falklands dispute between her country and the UK

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner announces she has asked for Pope Francis’ intervention in the Falklands dispute between her country and the UK

British Prime Minister David Cameron said last week that he “respectfully” disagreed with the view expressed in the past by Pope Francis that the Falkland Islands had been “usurped” by the UK.Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner is the first head of state Pope Francis has met. She presented him with a mate gourd and straw for drinking traditional Argentine tea.

The two also kissed, and the president remarked afterwards: “Never in my life has a pope kissed me!”

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner gave a muted welcome to the Pope’s election. The two have clashed in the past, especially over social reforms promoted by her and her late husband in the face of Church opposition.

When the then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio argued that gay adoptions discriminated against children, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said his tone harked back to “medieval times and the Inquisition”.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner once referred to Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the “head of the opposition”.

Last year, the cardinal said Argentina was being harmed by demagoguery, totalitarianism, corruption and efforts to secure unlimited power, the Associated Press reports.

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UK’s newspaper The Sun has taken out an advert in an English-language paper in Argentina defending Britain’s right to govern the Falkland Islands.

The advert is a response to an open letter from Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, which was printed in two British papers.

Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron has insisted the islanders must decide their own future.

Argentina invaded the islands in 1982 but was driven out by British forces.

A referendum on the islands’ political status is to be held in March.

On Thursday, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner published an open letter to David Cameron, in the Guardian newspaper and the Independent, repeating calls for the islands – which are known as the Malvinas in Argentina – to come under the sovereignty of her nation.

The Sun has taken out an advert in an English-language paper in Argentina defending Britain's right to govern the Falkland Islands

The Sun has taken out an advert in an English-language paper in Argentina defending Britain’s right to govern the Falkland Islands

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner urged David Cameron to abide by a 1965 UN resolution to “negotiate a solution” to the dispute.

But The Sun responded by taking out an advert in the Buenos Aires Herald – an English-language paper with a circulation of around 20,000 – telling Argentina to keep its “hands off”.

The advert refers to the 649 Argentines and 255 British servicemen whose lives were lost in the 1982 war and said it was a conflict fought to defend the principle of self-determination.

The ad goes on to dispute Argentina’s claim to the islands and points out British sovereignty dates back to 1765.

It ends with the words: “Until the people of the Falkland Islands choose to become Argentinean, they remain resolutely British.”

But the journalist Daniel Schweimler, who lives in Argentina, said The Sun’s message would not go down well.

Daniel Schweimler, who is based in Buenos Aires, said: “I’ve been here seven years now, and have never come across an Argentine who doesn’t believe that the Falklands belong to Argentina.”

“There’s never been any animosity towards me when I say I’m British, but I think it’s fair to say that almost across the board in a country of 40 million people that Las Malvinas, the Falklands, belong to them,” he added.

Argentine journalist Celina Andreassi agreed and says The Sun’s advert was quite provocative.

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has called on the UK government to hand over the Falkland Islands, in an open letter printed in British newspapers.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner urges British Prime Minister David Cameron to abide by a 1965 UN resolution to “negotiate a solution” over the islands.

The letter says they were forcibly stripped from Argentina in “a blatant exercise of 19th Century colonialism”.

The government said the Falklands’ population had chosen to be British.

The Foreign Office said there could be no negotiations on the sovereignty of the Falklands “unless and until such time as the islanders so wish”.

A referendum on the islands’ political status is to be held in March.

The letter, published as an advert in the Guardian newspaper and the Independent, follows repeated calls by President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner for the islands – which are known as the Malvinas in Argentina – to come under the sovereignty of her nation.

Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has called on the UK government to hand over the Falkland Islands, in an open letter printed in British newspapers

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has called on the UK government to hand over the Falkland Islands, in an open letter printed in British newspapers

Last year marked 30 years since the Falklands War, when the islands were occupied by Argentine forces for 74 days.

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner says her letter is published on the same date – January 3 – when, 180 years ago: “Argentina was forcibly stripped of the Malvinas Islands, which are situated 14,000 km [8,700 miles] away from London.”

She goes on: “The Argentines on the Islands were expelled by the Royal Navy and the United Kingdom subsequently began a population implantation process similar to that applied to other territories under colonial rule.

“Since then, Britain, the colonial power, has refused to return the territories to the Argentine Republic, thus preventing it from restoring its territorial integrity.”

In her final paragraph, she ends: “In the name of the Argentine people, I reiterate our invitation for us to abide by the resolutions of the United Nations.”

Argentina says it inherited ownership of the islands from Spain, arguing that British colonists occupied the islands by force in 1833 and expelled settlers, violating Argentina’s territorial integrity.

It also bases its claim on the islands’ proximity to the South American mainland. The islands’ capital, Port Stanley, lies about 1,180 miles (1,898km) from the Argentine capital Buenos Aires.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said that the Falkland Islanders “are British and have chosen to be so”.

“They remain free to choose their own futures, both politically and economically, and have a right to self-determination as enshrined in the UN Charter,” she added.

“This is a fundamental human right for all peoples.

“There are three parties to this debate, not just two as Argentina likes to pretend.

“The islanders can’t just be written out of history.”

In June, UK Prime Minister David Cameron confronted President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner about the issue when they came face-to-face at the G20 summit.

During the exchange, the prime minister rejected her demand for negotiations over the sovereignty of the islands and told her that she should respect the result of a referendum.

The Argentine president had earlier raised her demands at the United Nations, appearing at the annual meeting of the UN decolonization committee on the 30th anniversary of the end of Argentine occupation.

She used the occasion to reiterate Argentina’s opposition to any more wars and to criticize the prime minister’s decision to mark the day by flying the Falklands flag over 10 Downing Street.

In December, Argentina protested at Britain’s decision to name part of Antarctica, Queen Elizabeth Land. A formal protest note was given to the British ambassador, John Freeman, in Buenos Aires.

The area, which makes up around a third of the British Antarctic Territory, is also claimed by the South American country.

Thousands of Argentineans have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires in protest at the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.

Opposition activists used social networks to mobilize the march, which they said was one of the biggest anti-government protests in a decade.

Those gathered said they were angry at rising inflation, high levels of crime and high-profile corruption cases.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was re-elected by a landslide to a second term in 2011.

Her approval ratings have since dropped and protests against some of her policies have mounted.

Official figures say inflation is at 12%, but analysts say it is probably much higher.

Thousands of Argentineans have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires in protest at the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner

Thousands of Argentineans have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires in protest at the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner

The International Monetary Fund warned Argentina in September that unless it produced reliable growth and inflation data by December, it could face sanctions.

Protesters also voiced their objections to restrictions introduced last year, and further sharpened this year, on the purchase of dollars, which have made it harder for Argentines worried about inflation to trade in their currency.

The government says the slowdown of the Argentine economy is the fault of the global financial crisis rather than its policies.

Supporters of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner say the protests are driven by people from the middle and upper class worried about losing their privileges.

They point to policies supporting the poor, such as cash payments to the unemployed, as the real achievements of her government.

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